A lot of us say we want to be like Jesus, but considering who He is, we are not the same as Him. He stands alone in all of His attributes. He did live as a man as our example, however, and with the help of His Spirit who now dwells in us we can learn to imitate Him. Here's how:

• When falsely accused, be silent.

• When mocked, be humble.

• When forsaken, be faithful.

• When abused, be kind.

• When doubted, be trusting.

• When hurt, be helpful.

• When rejected, be accepting.

• When despised, be loving.

This was Jesus' response to suffering. Though my suffering has never been like His, I have been falsely accused, mocked, forsaken, abused, doubted, hurt, rejected, and despised. And the mistreatment is always painful. Jesus was sinless; I'm not. Jesus was innocent; I'm not. My sinful nature is in my humanity; therefore, I struggle with responding to mistreatment in the manner Jesus did. But I seek His help to overcome my weakness, and He helps me. I'm not like Jesus, rather, I'm like you. Hurt people hurt people, so, like you, as I've been pained I've pained others. Maybe your struggle with suffering is less than mine. But I've been hurt a lot, and I've messed up a lot, so I've asked for a lot of forgiveness, and I've asked for a lot of help. Though we humans were made in His image and likeness, much has changed since the beginning. Emulating Jesus is difficult for us to master by ourselves because ego drives us to be the opposite of Him. But there is hope. Though overcoming my ego is difficult, it's never difficult to lean on Jesus. So I lean, and He strengthens. He helps me remain silent when I want to defend myself. He helps me choose humility when I want to rise and fight. He helps me walk faithfully when I want to give up. He helps me show kindness when I want to retaliate. He helps me trust when I want to doubt. He helps me offer help when I want to give nothing. He helps me accept when I want to reject. He helps me love when I want to hate. Like you, I'm learning, slowly but surely, to master myself. Jesus' Spirit helps me and teaches me something new with each new struggle. I'll never be the same as Jesus as long as I'm full of my humanity. But someday, when He appears, and I see Him as He is, I'll be changed, and I'll finally be like Him. (See 1 John 3:2.) In the meantime, I'll keep learning from, relying on, and following after Him. And I'll keep letting Him grow me into a better creation.